after eating the stuff for more than a year now (my wife got me hooked on the stuff) i am now begining to question the relative safety of the dish. in the US i was always afraid to touch uncooked meat, but when i came to thailand i saw so many people eating it (in isaan) and not dying from it that i figured it would be safe to eat. when i lived in bangkok i ate the stuff as well even though i knew quality was probably not gauranteed.

in isaan in the village my wife told me that the meat came from a cow killed that day, which put me more at ease. when i buy it now in the gulf i'm not sure how old it is or how dangerous it might be.

i figured my squirts were from beer, but maybe its the raw meat???

I think that your fairly safe with beef given that the kitchen facilities are hygienic. However, pork is a different matter. I had some undercooked laarb moo at a stall in Petchabun last year and couldn't travel further than 10 metres* from the toilet for a week! Gastroenteritis they called it.

* I moved the fish closer to the toilet.

It is the time for FLUKES have a party .woohoooooooooooo

I think that your fairly safe with beef given that the kitchen facilities are hygienic. However, pork is a different matter. I had some undercooked laarb moo at a stall in Petchabun last year and couldn't travel further than 10 metres* from the toilet for a week! Gastroenteritis they called it.

* I moved the fish closer to the toilet.

raw pork is very dangerous as it carries all sorts of nasties like liver flukes etc

My wife says that in Isaan many people die of liver cancer due to eating laap. IMO eat cooked meat only

I think that your fairly safe with beef given that the kitchen facilities are hygienic. However, pork is a different matter. I had some undercooked laarb moo at a stall in Petchabun last year and couldn't travel further than 10 metres* from the toilet for a week! Gastroenteritis they called it.

* I moved the fish closer to the toilet.

raw pork is very dangerous as it carries all sorts of nasties like liver flukes etc

ALL raw meat is potentially dangerous, and getting "the squirts" is probably at the lowest end of the scale.i love raw, or semi raw beef, but would not dream of eating it in isaan, where animals are generally not slaughtered in an abottoir with regular inspections of the carcasses. no matter how fresh, or "hygienically " it was slaughtered or prepared, make sure anything you eat has had the shit cooked out of it!!!

by the way, did you see the news clipping on the thai wedding guests who died recently after eating raw pork?!!!

I am always open to try new things, food or otherwise, it's the fun of experiencing a new culture.

But this laab is just too spicy for me, and they chop all sorts into it, entrails and all. Tried it once, it's rather bitter as well.

No thanks on this one!

This reminds me, anyone tried the fried beetles and grasshoppers?

I wonder where they get these from, are they save to eat, I might try after a few cold beers late one night!